Old McDonald’s Lodge

Days three and four were spent at the historic McDonald Lodge in Glacier National Park. What an amazing treasure. I’m so glad these beautiful lodges have been saved for everyone to see, as guests or tourists. The rooms aren’t huge, or that amazing, but the lobbies and grounds are stunning. We really enjoyed the large fireplace since our days were rather cloudy/rainy/cool. Lillian wore her pink hat with the flower and others started recognizing her out on the trail by her hat. She was the talk of the lodge. As was Ella who would put on little dance shows in the lobby for anyone who would watch.

   

We took quite a few nature drives, on some narrow, winding, gravel roads. The Suburban handled it like a champ. As did Ella who has a history of some motion sickness. Luckily, we didn’t christen the Suburban with any stomach contents. But, driving off the beaten paths was well worth it. We didn’t see much for wildlife other than deer, but we did find an amazing little tiny town called Polebridge. It’s really the only town for many, many, many miles and has a population of very, very, very few. But, they have a store that is on the National Historic Register that is your one stop for any possible need you may have. Including, amazing homemade bread, sandwiches and pastry. We stopped for a snack, stretch break and playtime.

Both nights we were at the lodge, we enjoyed Ranger-led programs. The first program was about birds of prey, led by Ranger Max who is from Minnesota. The rangers are younger than us. *sigh* But, we learned that falcons fly 200 mph into their prey, basically knocking it out if not killing it. Hawks have amazing long-distance vision and can see a mouse from a mile away, but are so severely far-sighted that they fly into things, like fences, because they can’t see them.

 

   

  

 

   

We enjoyed the views around Lake McDonald. Took some easy hikes to Avalanche Falls and other nearby places, not requiring bear spray. On our way out of the park, we purchased both girls National Park Passports, so each time they visit a park, they can get the official stamp on their passport pages, and we’ll take photos of them at each park they visit to put in their passport. Ella also completed the requirements to be sworn in as an official “Junior Park Ranger” by Ranger Heather (also younger than me). Ella wore her badge proud throughout our vacation and it worked well as a motivational/behavior management tool. “Rangers drink their milk”, “Park Rangers have to go to bed so they have energy”, “Every Ranger brushes their teeth.” Use what you’ve got. Ella even wore her Ranger badge to her first day of school for a little extra boost of courage.